Autumn Fires!

Sing a song of seasons! Something bright in all! Flowers in the summer ... Fires in the fall! Excerpt from "Autumn Fires" By Robert Louis Stevenson (From A Child’s Garden of Verses, 1885)

Fire on the Trace

I travel the Natchez Trace between Clinton and Ridgeland, Mississippi, several times a week, and this time of year it is a real challenge to keep my car from wandering off the road. The Trace is literally ablaze with the fiery colors of the Chinese Tallow trees that stretch for miles alongside the road, and it is a breathtaking sight.

Although they are considered a "nuisance tree" by many (my husband included), I love Tallow trees, especially in the Fall. Their translucent leaves shimmer in the sunlight, and remind me of stained glass.

Some people apply that old adage, "If you've seen one, you've seen them all," to Fall foliage, but you will never convince me of that theory. If you look closer at the foliage, you will see that each tree is different ... not only in size and shape, but also in the way light and shadows contrast its colors and the texture of its leaves.

This stunning tree caused me to slam on my brakes and pull off the road until traffic cleared, so I could back up to get a closer look (there's not a lot of traffic on the Trace, thank goodness!).

Now tell me, is that not the most glorious tree!

This coming weekend my husband and I are going to be traveling the Trace to north Mississippi for a weekend getaway, and I look forward to capturing more of God's glory along our journey.

An Autumn Kaleidoscope

I travel the Natchez Trace whenever I can, especially when traveling from Vicksburg to Ridgeland, Mississippi, which I do at least once a week, if not more.

The Trace is always pretty and the speed limit is 50, so it's a nice, tranquil drive and you can take time to enjoy the scenery.

Yesterday, I had an appointment in Jackson, and decided to take my cameras with me to capture some pictures of the beautiful foliage along the Trace. The Chinese Tallow trees were ablaze with color as the morning sun filtered through their leaves of red and gold.

As I looked at the trees through my zoom lens, it was as if I was looking through a kaleidoscope (you can click on the pictures to enlarge them, if you'd like).

The colors were so vivid they all ran together, like pieces of stained glass hanging from the trees.

I have no words to describe the glorious colors of God's autumn palette, but perhaps you can get a glimpse of their magnificence reflected through my pictures.

I'm so glad I was able to get these pictures of the Tallow trees (also called "Popcorn trees") when they were at their peak. They'll soon lose all those glorious leaves, but then their branches will be "decorated" for the winter months with clusters of white, wax-coated seeds resembling popcorn. The branches are elegant when used in arrangements for Christmas and winter decorating projects.

[Internet photo]

I'll have to go back and get some pictures of the seed pods after the leaves fall. Hmmmm .... perhaps I can find a tree that "needs some trimming" and capture some branches, as well as some pictures.